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There are many, many "paella" recipes. Originally paella was a dish made in Valencia using chicken, rabbit, snails, and three types of fresh beans. Now, paella is almost always associated with seafood, chicken, and vegetables. There is no right or wrong recipe, only the recipe that pleases you. Paella ingredients and vary from place to place, and time to time, depending on local traditions in the ingredients available. Anything from fresh garden produce to holiday left-overs can inspire cook to create an original version of this one-dish feast! The dish was named after the pan it is cooked in, a paellera, which is also used for variety of rice dishes, such as arroz negro, as well as the Spanish pasta dish: fideuá. This is only one recipe, use your imagination and the ingredients at hand, varying the ingredients can make paella an everyday dish.
1/2 cup uncooked Valencian rice per person (or 1/3 cup if using Bomba rice)
1 cup chicken stock per 1/2 cup of rice (1 cup per 1/3 cup if using Bomba rice)
5 threads saffron per person, dissolved in 1/2 cup white wine
4 tablespoons, or more, olive oil, to cover bottom of pan
1 piece of chicken, such as thigh, per person
1/2 to 1 soft chorizo, such as Bilbao or Palacios, per person
1/2 teaspoon Spanish sweet or bittersweet pimentón (paprika) per person
1 clove garlic per person
1/4 cup chopped onion per person
1/8 cup grated tomato (cut in half, grate and discard the skin) per person
2 shrimp or prawns per person
2-4 small clams and/or mussels per person
red piquillo pepper cut in strips
artichoke hearts, green beans or peas
cooked Granja beans (optional)
lemon wedges for garnish
Heat stock and keep warm.
Toast saffron gently in a small pan. When aroma is released, add white wine. Allow to come to a boil then remove from heat.
Heat paella pan over medium heat, add olive oil and fry chicken. When chicken is golden and juice runs clear, add garlic and onions and sauté until translucent.
Add chorizo and cook until heated.
Add the rice, stirring until well coated with oil (about one minute)
Add the paprika and grated tomato
Stir, add saffron flavored wine and hot stock
Bring to a boil, scraping the bottom of pan, then add piquillo pepper and artichoke hearts, green beans, cooked garrofón beans or peas
Adjust heat to maintain a slow boil. After about five minutes, add the seafood. Cook another 15 minutes, or until rice is done.
Sprinkle with chopped parsley, garnish with lemon wedges and serve. (To ensure proper cooking, clams ay be steamed in a separate pan, then added to the paella with their nectar substituting for some of the chicken stock).
Traditionally, paella is not stirred during the second half of the cooking time. This produces a caramelized layer of rice on the bottom of the pan considered by many to be the best part. With a large pan, it is difficult to accomplish this on an American stove and you may prefer to stir the paella occasionally or move the pan around on the burner(s). Another alternative is to finish the paella by placing it in a 350° oven for the last 10-15 minutes of cooking. Paelleras can also be used on a barbecue, over an open fire (the most traditional), or on a counter top grill.
Seasoning a carbon steel pan: Treat carbon steel Paelleras as you would a Chinese wok or a cast iron skillet. Before using the first time, boil water in it to remove oil, dirt and the label glue. Dry carefully, heat up the pan, then coat both sides with olive oil. Season the pan by baking it in the oven until the oil browns. Re-oil lightly after each use. Never leave water in the pan as it may rust. If rust appears it can usually be wiped off with oil but if necessary use emery cloth and oil to clean off the rust down to shiny, bare metal, and then re-season the pan.
BBQ paella: Cooking a Paella on a BBQ is easy because the cooking sequence follows the natural cycle of the fire.Once you have established a good, hot bed of coals, you brown the chicken & any other meats in olive oil, then add chopped onions & sauté gently. The fire only needs to remain hot enough to bring the liquid to a boil when you add the rice. Once it has reached boiling, the rice can slowly simmer, absorbing the juices from the other ingredients, along with the color, flavor & aroma of the saffron (if you throw sprigs of herbs or grapevines on the coals, their smoke will flavor the clams & mussels). The fire can die down slowly while the rice cooks for about 20 minutes. Enjoy.
For visual inspiration, see different paella photo albums on the Paris-Madrid Grocery Facebook page.
#paella #spanish
Paris-Madrid Grocery, 1418 Western Ave, Seattle, WA 98101 -- (206) 682-0679 -- food and wine from both sides of the Pyrenees -- ParisMadridGrocery.com